


Altar of Flames

by Matloc



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Abuse, Akashi's a shapeshifter but not necessarily a werewolf, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Shapeshifters, Explanation inside I guess, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, no concrete plot decided yet, sorry - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-10
Updated: 2015-04-10
Packaged: 2018-03-22 05:01:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,076
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3716098
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Matloc/pseuds/Matloc
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tetsuya gets more than he bargained for when he decides to help a wounded wolf.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Altar of Flames

**Author's Note:**

> yo @(o・ェ・)@ノ First things first, I went back to dumblr... well, not really. I just opened up a side blog to keep better track of my writing. You can check it out [here](http://thesleepermustnotwake.tumblr.com/). It's not really worth following imo, since it's literally only a writing dump. But I do post ~~spoilers~~ excerpts from my WIPs/future projects there and random things I've written that I don't know where to put. So if you're ever interested in what I've been up to lately, that's the place to go. If KiKuro's your thing, you can check out the oneshot I've been working on over there.
> 
> EDIT: Akashi's not a werewolf I'M SORRY FOR BEING MISLEADING??? (-̩̩̩-̩̩̩-̩̩̩-̩̩̩-̩̩̩___-̩̩̩-̩̩̩-̩̩̩-̩̩̩-̩̩̩) PLS FORGEB ME  
> He has 'other' transformations too, he just prefers creepin' around like a wolf most of the time. SORRY FOR ANY DASHED HOPES ;_;

 

 

Tetsuya came into their world after the death of a stormy night. That is why the strongest memory of his mother was of her telling his wee little self that upon his birth, she saw an angel for the first time in her arms.

It is too bad his father never shared the sentiment, because after his wife passed away, he had deemed Tetsuya lower than the dirt under his shoe. Twelve years later, Tetsuya  believes that all those sweet words were a lie. The only truth that persists in his life is the kind that forms bruises on his skin and cracks in his ribs. He wakes up to fresh ones when old marks fade away. Sometimes he wishes the pain would fade with time too.

In all seventeen summers of his life, Tetsuya presumed himself no angel. Just broken pieces of what was once human. Because when he sees his father hunched over, clutching his heart, he hopes to the black skies above that today would be the day the old man takes his last breath.

All senses of pity and compassion have been beaten out of him since long ago. That is why the only thing that rushes through him, as his father coughs and wheezes, is a gust of anticipation.

But then his father straightens up and returns to being a hulking ogre of a man again. Tetsuya inhales deeply and braces himself for another vicious jab to his side. What his father hates most is being caught in his weakened state, and Tetsuya has been a repeat offender one time too many.

Now it is Tetsuya who’s on his knees, Tetsuya who’s wheezing, Tetsuya who’s clenching his side like his bones might just fall out. His father looms over him, smug and vexed. He kicks the boy aside like a sack of potatoes and Tetsuya chokes on his own spit. His side is burning, and breathing hurts even more, but his father pays no heed as he grabs the bottle of moonshine on the table and marches off into his room.

Tetsuya is not sure how long he’s been lying on the floor, but he shifts a little and realizes he can finally move now. The pain stills eats at his flesh, but it is now more of a spreading ache than a piercing sting. He’s long ago learnt that as long as the pain doesn’t make him flinch, he can allow his body some freedom of movement.

The day is already being dragged into the dark. Tetsuya decides his newly forming bruises can wait till the break of morrow’s dawn. He limps out of the cottage on glass steps, favoring his right side while clutching his left. Even without the heat of the sun, the hot air suffocates his already tired lungs. He wishes it was winter so he could have used the snow to numb his aching side, but he can only hear the crunch of dry grass under his shoes. So he resigns himself to another night in the barn.

Perhaps it was a stretch to consider Tetsuya a mere shell of a human being. No matter how much time comes to pass, he still can’t detach himself from the sentimentality hidden in the walls of the barn.

It used to house a black beauty once. A marvelous steed, he bellowed power and agility with every fierce clang of his hooves.

When Tetsuya met him as a child, the sound was so loud, booming like a thunderclap with each strut. That was why he had named him Raijin, and true to his name, he was a fervid companion in Tetsuya’s hunting trips. He used to glide in open fields, helping Tetsuya aim closer to his mark. With fast moving targets that often tend to switch directions, like rabbits, it was hard to keep up and shoot at the same time. Which was why Raijin was truly a blessing to the boy.

And now, years later, he knows that he couldn’t have perfected his hunting skills without Raijin. But Raijin wasn’t just a hunting aid, he was also the only thing that Tetsuya could consider a friend back then. Growing up in an impoverished village, where children who couldn’t survive on their own were sold like livestock, Tetsuya has known only hunting and crafting as his way of life. That is why a part of him still lingers in the wake of Raijin’s passing. Like a wandering ghost neither hell nor heaven is willing to take in.

It has already been a year, but Tetsuya can still only find comfort in the hay he used to lay with Raijin in. In any case, it feels better than the hard cold floor of the cottage den, so it’s not like he had many options to choose from.

It is only when he’s a couple steps inside the barn that he smells it. An all too familiar, pungent stink of iron and rust. He whirls around and his vision immediately drops to the ground. He curses himself for missing it, because even though night has already fallen, the moonlight that streams in makes the large stain shine bright and clear. There is no mistaking it.

_Blood._

He hurries back to the entrance to pick up the lantern, lighting it up to survey the area better. He chokes back another swear when he sees the trail. Where it ends—in the clamor of his ordeal with his father earlier, he completely forgot to check on the cattle.

This time he curses out loud, he’s messed up so many times today. And now an innocent calf might have to pay for his carelessness.

He hears a growl just then, and he stops. The noise is heavy and low, as if it was a large animal, but it is also ragged like it’s having trouble breathing.

He approaches the trail slowly, following it to a turn into one of the stalls. Tetsuya realizes that the animal must have wandered out of the forest that is right behind their house, looking for a place to rest. He holds up the lantern to see into the darkness of the stall.

And he does see it. Sporting a large wound blending into its scarlet fur, it lies on its side, tilting its head up towards the intruder. He sees mismatched eyes glint back at him in blood and gold.

The red wolf bares its fangs at Tetsuya.

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> this doesn't have an actual plot yet so it's more of a sneak preview? I've got a few things planned out for the next chapter, but I can't guarantee any updates after that. Not until my KiKuro fic's finished anyway.


End file.
